THE COORDINATION FORUM FOR COUNTERING ANTISEMITISM
Special Report on Anti-Semitic Incidents - October 2000
Due to the dramatic increase in antisemitic activity perpetrated against Jewish communities since Rosh Hashanah 5761 - the beginning of October 2000 - we are attaching a special report on clashes/attacks and attack attempts against Jews. This activity was carried out by hostile elements including Muslims, Arabs and radicals, at times left and/or right extremists with Arab elements. The goal of these elements is to attack Israel and Jews and to incite public opinion against them.
The incidents appear in chronological order.
In late September, (apparently the 29th), during Friday prayer services at two mosques in Brussels, the muezzins called on the worshippers to take revenge against the Jews in response to events in the Territories.
In the late evening of 29 September, stones were thrown at the windows of the 'Kehillat Yaakov' synagogue in London.
On the night of 29 September, stones were thrown at the windows of the 'Fieldgate Street' Great Synagogue in London.
On Saturday, 30 September, an unidentified person attacked a 50-year-old Hassidic Jew in New York. The attacker wounded the Jew with a knife and shouted obscene remarks at him. Among other things, the attacker said he was a Palestinian and asked the Jew why he did not leave. The Jew required hospital treatment.
On 1 October, outside the synagogue in Aubervilliers, Paris, a car driven by an Arab tried to run over worshippers that were on their way back to the synagogue from the 'Tashlich' prayers. No one was injured. Later on, several young Arabs gathered in front of the synagogue and began throwing bottles of water at the synagogue wall.
On 1 October, several Arabs harassed Jews returning from the 'Tashlich' prayers to the 'Oheleycha Yaakov' synagogue in Paris. The young Arabs began approaching the synagogue and throwing chestnuts at the 600-700 worshippers. The police, who were present with reinforcements, blocked the agitators and apparently arrested some of them.
On 1 October, a young Arab tried to throw a stone at a synagogue at 8 May Street, in Creteil, a suburb of Paris.
On 1 October, during the prayer service in Villeurbanne, Lyons, Arabs/Muslims shouted verbal provocations in front of synagogues.
During the New Year holiday, a skinhead approached the 'Terling' synagogue in Antwerp and began cursing the worshippers and making the Nazi salute. The man was removed from the premises by the police.
During the holiday, several young Arabs approached the same synagogue in Antwerp shouting curses and threats. They were later removed from the premises.
In early October, drawings of swastikas were seen in several places in the center of Lille, as well as the equation: 'Anti-Arab = Star of David'.
On 2 October, the synagogue at 3 Rue Gresset in the 19th quarter in Paris, received phone threats during the Selichot morning prayer services. A bottle was thrown at the synagogue.
On 2 October, a religious ruling (fatwa) was issued in Britain calling for a Jihad war against Israel and various Israeli interests. The fatwa appeared over the Internet. On 5 October, it was published that Sheikh Omar Abd Al-Rahman, who is in a U.S. prison, also issued a call for a Jihad war against Jews wherever they are.
On the night of 2 October, unknown persons threw three Molotov cocktails at the main entrance of the synagogue/community center in Dusseldorf. The bottles hit the door and one of them ignited. A woman passing by jumped over the fence and extinguished the fire.
On 2 October, an anonymous announcement was received at the fire department in Nice on a bomb planted in a synagogue in Nice.
On 2 October, an anonymous threat was received at the police station in Malmo, Sweden, on an attack intention against a synagogue in the city.
During the night between 2-3 October, stones were thrown by youths at the synagogue on Clinic Street in Brussels. Several window panes on the synagogue's first floor were smashed.
During the night between 2-3 October, unknown persons attacked a Jewish couple in Schwerin in north-east Germany. The woman was seriously injured.
The Jewish cemetery in Schwaebisch Hall, Germany was desecrated during the night between 2-3 October. Unknown persons smeared red paint and drew swastikas on 11 gravestones.
Swastikas were drawn on the memorial to the Buchenwald concentration camp during the night of 3 October, the Unification of Germany Day.
In Halle, Germany, a memorial commemorating a destroyed synagogue, was defaced by six swastikas.
At 22:30 on 3 October, there was an arson attempt on the synagogue in the Villepine suburb of Paris. 2-3 firebombs were thrown at the front of the synagogue. The doors were severly burnt and the fire started spreading throughout the building. Firemen managed to get the fire under control. There were no casualties.
On 3 October, an unidentified person phoned the offices of the 'Binyan Olam' synagogue in Campinas, near San Paolo, Brazil. The caller threatened to kill the policemen stationed at the synagogue entrance, adding that if additional policemen arrived, he would plant a bomb in the synagogue to kill everyone.
A protest demonstration was held in Saloniki, Greece on 3 October in front of the Jewish community offices.
In Florence and Venice, anonymous phone calls were received on 3 October denouncing Israel and the Jews.
During the night between 3-4 October, in Malmo, Sweden, unknown persons burned the purification building in the cemetery, damaged gravestones and set the cemetery office on fire.
In Italy, the Radical Right also joined the 'protest festival' against Israel. In incidents against Jewish merchants, on 4 October, activists from the Forza Nuova movement distributed pamphlets to passersby near the Colisseum in Rome.
On 4 October, the Jewish cemetery in Potsdam was desecrated. A 15 cm. gallows was drawn over the Star of David that was carved on the entrance sign to the cemetery.
Dummy letter bombs were thrown at the homes of the heads of the Jewish community in Germany, Speigel and his deputy Friedman. Each envelope contained a clock with electric wires and a letter with the sentence 'This will soon happen to you, too'.
On 4 October, a Jewish school in Paris received anti-Semitic phone threats.
On 5 October, radio 786, an Islamic radio station in Capetown, which identifies with the PAGAD organization, broadcast propaganda and incitement against Israel and the Jews, including calls for liberating Jerusalem from the Zionists.
On 5 October, a pupil of the 'Ohr Yossef' school in the 19th quarter in Paris was attacked by a group of Arab boys while he was leaving school.
During the night between 5-6 October, stones were thrown at a synagogue in Kreutzberg, Berlin. Some window panes were smashed.
During the night between 5-6 October, slogans were written on the 'Bar Yohai' and 'Or Aviv' synagogues in Marseilles. The slogans said 'Death to the Jews' and 'Jews are murderers'.
On 6 October, stones were thrown at pupils leaving the Tenouji school in the Saint-Ouen suburb in North Paris.
On 6 October, three e-mail messages were received at the 'O Hebreu' Jewish newspaper editorial offices in San Paolo. The messages included extremely blunt abuse and threats towards the Jews. The writer threatened that on 21 and 28 October, facilities belonging to the Jewish Federation in San Paolo and Rio de Janeiro would be bombed, as well as the consulates in Rio, San Paolo and the embassy in Brasilia. The writer promised to make good his threats by the end of 2000. The writer signed in the name of the Bin Laden organization and Hizballah.
A similar e-mail message to the above was received at the Jewish Museum website in Rio de Janeiro including abuse, comparisons of Jews to Hitler, and a threat to blow up the Jewish Museum in Rio on 16 October.
On 6 October, the Arab community of Panama published an official announcement of protest and derogatory expressions against Israel and the Jews in response to the events in Israel. According to the wording of the announcement, 'The Jews are murderers who kill everyone opposing their desire to take over the world'.
The 'Ciudad De Libropinion' website operating in Latin America, which calls itself the 'National Socialism City in the Internet', published the inciting call: 'Zionist committers of genocide, get out!'. The website regularly updates surfers on events in Israel, supporting what it calls the 'Palestinian struggle for independence.' In the 7 October update, a picture appears of Palestinian youths waving a red flag with a black swastika in the middle. The website uses distinct Arab/Palestinian terminology, such as 'the Jewish occupation army murdered 47 Palestinians, including 12 infants, who were shot to death'. The website also updates its readers/surfers on Khamenei's calls for a Jihad against Israel.
On Saturday, 7 October, members of the Germany-Lebanon Friendship League held a demonstration in the streets of Lessen, Germany. While passing a synagogue, the demonstrators threw stones at the synagogue and smashed several window panes.
On 7 October, a pro-Palestinian demonstration was held in front of the U.N. building in Geneva. Some 1000 persons participated in the demonstration and calls were heard for mounting a Jihad against Jews.
On Saturday evening, 7 October, during the evening prayer service, a Molotov cocktail was thrown into the synagogue in the Aubervilliers suburb in north east Paris. The worshippers extinguished the fire and no damage was done. The building is a Jewish school which is converted into a synagogue during the holidays. In the same neighbourhood, local Arab residents told the synagogue rabbi that Arabs in the neighbourhood were planning to damage the synagogue on the Day of atonement.
On Saturday evening, 7 October, Molotov cocktails were thrown at a Jewish restaurant next to the 19th quarter in Paris. Stones also were thrown at the restaurant smashing a window, the restaurant was severely damaged but not burnt. In the same area, several Arabs gathered later on and tried to enter other Jewish restaurants while shouting curses and threats.
On Saturday evening, 7 October, the 'La Duchere' synagogue in one of the suburbs of Lyons, France , was attacked by Arabs who threw stones at the worshippers. The worshippers were rescued from the premises by police vehicles.
During the second week of October, Arabs/Muslims in Lyons were heard threatening to attack synagogues and Jews during the Day of Atonement. Among other things, they threatened to burn synagogues.
On 7 October, a window was smashed in the Reform synagogue in Edgware, London.
On 7 October, objects were thrown at the windows of the 'Yeshurun' synagogue in Edgware, London.
On 7 October, the 'Elstree and Burehamwood' synagogue in London was broken into. The ark was smashed and children's torah scrolls were burnt.
On the night of 7 October, bottles were thrown at the windows of the synagogue in Upper Berkely Street in London.
During the night of 7 October, bottles were thrown through the windows of a synagogue in Seymour Place.
During the night between 7-8 October, slogans were once again written on the 'Bar Yohai' synagogue in Marseilles.
On 8 October, around midnight, guards posted at the 'Eitz Haim' synagogue in Marseilles noticed skinheads trying to set the succah next to the synagogue on fire. A skinhead who began insulting and cursing the guards fled the premises towards the main street, Michelet, where a car was waiting for him and drove off.
On the night of 8 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the 'Petah Eliahu' synagogue on Impasse Beauvisage Street in the 8th quarter in Lyons, a quarter populated mostly by Arabs. A neighbour who lived nearby noticed the fire in the synagogue and alerted the fire department which got the fire under control. No damage was caused and no one was hurt.
On 8 October, windows were smashed in a synagogue in Leicester.
On 8 October, windows were smashed in the Progressive synagogue in Birmingham.
On 8 October, stones were thrown from a car passing near the Kenton United synagogue. The stones were aimed at two elderly people and their children who belong to the congregation.
On 8 October, passengers in a van tried to spit at people coming to the 'Emmanuel College' synagogue in London.
On 8 October a bomb threat was received by the Kinloss synagogue in London.
On Yom Kippur eve (8 October), a Molotov cocktail was thrown by three Muslim youths into the "Adat Israel synagogue" in the Bronx, New York. The youths were late arrested.
In Dagestan, Russia, stones were thrown at a synagogue on 8 October and fliers threatening Jews were distributed.
On the night between 8-9 October the windows of the "Beit Shalom" synagogue in Ottawa were smashed. Graffiti reading "Islam Forever"
was scrawled over the walls as well.
On 9 October Muslims demonstrated in Montreal and among other slogans, they called out "Murder the Jews".
The spokesman of the Jewish Canadian Congress stated that since 2 October, over five attacks had been perpetrated against synagogues in and around Toronto.
During the morning hours of 9 October, fire was set to the "Ohev Shalom" Central Reform synagogue of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. A new building attached to the synagogue and part of the latter caught fire. Heavy damage was caused.
During Kol-Nidrei prayers on Yom Kippur Eve (8 October) 3 Molotov cocktails were thrown at a synagogue in Clichy S/Bois, Paris, one of them igniting. The incident caused panic, the worshippers shortened the service and dispersed.
A bullet was thrown near the 'La Victoire' great synagogue in Paris. The police arrested a Tunisian living in the neighbourhood on suspicion of being connected with the incident.
A synagogue in the Creil suburb of Paris, was damaged when attacked by Molotov cocktails.
Molotov cocktails were thrown in Paris 19th quarter at the Jewish high school which had been converted into a synagogue .
The Jewish cemetery in the Trappes quarter in Paris (near Versailles) was desecrated.
During the night between 9-10 October, unknown persons broke into the synagogue on Rue Crimee in the 19th quarter in Paris and damaged furniture and Torah scrolls.
During the Day of Atonement (9 October), Arabs threw stones at the worshippers in the 'Manget' synagogue in Lyon's Venicieux district. No one was hurt and no damage was caused.
In Strasbourg, pedestrians passing the tram station opposite the Central Synagogue cursed worshippers coming to the synagogue on the Day of Atonement.
At the end of the Day of atonement (9 October), one of the two Bukharian synagogues active in Tashkent was set on fire and razed to the ground. The arson was apparently committed with a Molotov cocktail thrown into the synagogue through an opening made in the wall after an air conditioner had been removed. Five torah scrolls were burnt.
On the 9 October a large swastika was drawn on the main entrance to the 'Maimonides' synagogue in Brussels.
The Holocaust memorial in the Anderlecht quarter in Brussels was desecrated. Slogans were drawn on the memorial and apparently an attempt was made to damage it.
The synagogue in the Anderlecht district in Brussels was stoned on the Day of Atonement.
At the end of the Day of Atonement (9 October), an orthodox Jew was attacked by a group of Arabs in the vicinity of the Clinic Street synagogue in Brussels. He was severely beaten and required hospitalization.
On the Day of Atonement, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the synagogue in the town of Emmen, Netherlands, near the German border. The Emmen community is a small one which has been recently involved in erecting a memorial for Holocaust victims.
On 9 October, three skinheads broke into the synagogue in the city Oss, Netherlands, and threatened the worshippers.
In the evening of 9 October, several young Arabs threw stones at the 'Oheleycha Yaakov' synagogue in the 19th quarter in Paris. No damage was done.
On 9 October, apparently at night, unknown persons smashed the front window of a Jewish library on Landelennstraat Street in Antwerp. The library is located in a quarter populated by Jews.
On 10 October at 21:30, three Molotov cocktails were thrown into a synagogue in 'Les Ulis', a suburb in the south west of Paris. The ground floor (the synagogue hall) was entirely burnt down. The synagogue rabbi was on the premises and succeeded in escaping to the second storey which was not yet in flames. The fire department arrived, rescued the rabbi and extinguished the fire.
On 10 October in the evening, the chief rabbi of Paris received an anonymous call that the 'Tournelle' synagogue in Paris was about to be blown up. The caller later said the threat had been removed but the Jews should watch out.
On 10 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the Jewish high school in the 19th quarter in Paris. No damage was done.
In the morning of 10 October, when workers arrived at the 'Beth Jacob' Jewish school in Mexico City, they found several windows and panes broken. Stones had been thrown during the night. During the Day of atonement, the school was used as a synagogue.
During the night between 10-11 October, an explosion was heard from the door of a synagogue in the Trappes suburb, near Versailles. Flames later rose up from the inside of the synagogue which burnt down completely, including five of the Torah scrolls that were inside. The nearby cemetery was also desecrated.
On 11 October, a group of extreme-right youths, members of GUD, attacked Jewish students in the Sorbonne University, Paris. During the attack an Israeli flag was burnt and slogans as " Paris like Gaza-Intifada" were shouted.
On 11 October, a group of some 10 Arabs armed with baseball bats, were walking around near the synagogue on Henri Murger Street in the 19th quarter in Paris while worshippers were inside the building.
On 11 October, an ANC demonstration was held in Capetown during which cries of 'Death to the Jews' were heard.
During the night between 11-12 October, two Molotov cocktails were thrown at the synagogue in the Colombes suburb in Paris.
During the night between 11-12 October, Molotov cocktails were thrown at the 'Creil' synagogue in Paris.
During the night between 11-12 October, several incidents occurred against Jews in the Spanish enclave of Seuta in Morocco. A window and the entrance to the synagogue were smashed. Abusive slogans against Jews were discovered in the mall.
On 12 October, the synagogue in Seynes-Sur-Mer in the French Riviera (near Toulon) was set on fire.
On 12 October, a threatening phonecall was received at the 'Copernic' synagogue in Paris.
On 12 October, stones were thrown at a bus taking children from the 'Tenouji' school in the Savigny S/Orge suburb of Paris.
On 12 October four young Arabs threw four bottles at a man wearing a skullcap and injured his head. The incident took place in Paris, 20th quarter.
On 12 October, stones were thrown at night school students who were travelling in a car in Paris. The car windows were smashed.
In the evening of 12 October in Chicago, unknown persons fired bullets from a passing car at an orthodox rabbi while he was parking his car near his home.
In another incident in Chicago, on 12 October, three Palestinian youths hit two orthodox Jews with a slingshot. The youths were arrested by the police.
During the night between 12-13 October, several Molotov cocktails were thrown at the 'Bondy' synagogue in Paris. One of the rooms went up in flames and extensive damage was caused.
During the night between 12-13 October, the door of the "Julien-La Croix" synagogue in the 20th quarter in Paris was torched. That same night, several people were sleeping inside the synagogue.
During the night between 12-13 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a school in the St. Ouen suburb in Paris. Only slight damage was caused.
The doors of two Jewish homes in Orly in south Paris were set on fire.
A synagogue was torched in Toulouse.
On 13 October Molotov cocktails were thrown at a synagogue in the Strasbourg area.
On 13 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a synagogue in the Longjumeau suburb , Paris. The bottle did not ignite.
On 13 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a synagogue in the Garge- Les-Gonesses suburb in Paris.
On 13 October, stones and pieces ok broken bottles were thrown at a synagogue in La Courneuve, next to Paris.
On 13 October, at approximately 15:00, stones were thrown at the Jewish community building/synagogue in Madrid. Four windows were broken.
On the night of 13 October, there was an explosion and subsequent fire in a synagogue in Syracuse, New York. No one was hurt but much damage was done to the premises.
During the night between 13-14 October, several incidents occurred in Paris and its suburbs. Two Molotov cocktails were thrown at a synagogue an Chevilly-La-Rue which is next to Paris. Slight damage was caused. Additional Molotov cocktails were found around the synagogue's succah.
In the 18th quarter, a gang of youths set fire to a vehicle on which anti-Semitic slogans and swastikas were written. Later that night the same gang shattered windows of a shop belonging to a Jew in Paris in the same quarter.
Stones were thrown at a kosher restaurant in the 19th quarter.
A group of people tried to torch the door of a synagogue in Noisy-Le-Sec.
A Molotov cocktail was thrown at a synagogue in Bagnolet. Slight damage was caused.
During the night between 14-15 October, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a synagogue/community center in Canberra, Australia.
During the night between 14-15 October, windows of the 'St. John's Wood' synagogue in Britain were smashed.
On 15 October, three Molotov cocktails were thrown at a synagogue in Pavillon street in Brussels.
On 16 October, an orthodox Jew in his twenties was stabbed while riding a bus in Stamford Hill in north London. The attacker stabbed the Jew about twenty times with a hunting knife. The victim's condition is extremely serious but stable. The 27-year old attacker, of Algerian origin, was arrested by the police.